The South County freshman football team had their first scrimmage tonight, hosting Hayfield and playing very solidly against the Hawks for the first two-thirds of the scrimmage. Unfortunately, David did not play.
His star-crossed efforts at being part of the team continued this week. Monday he missed practice because we misread the starting time, and, arriving late, he was sent home. Tuesday he made it on time, and instead of being a wingback, he began working as a strong safety for the first time. He says he asked to make the change; he says the offensive backs coaches yelled at him all the time, and as one of ten boys repping at wingback, he didn't think he had a future there. So they put him at strong safety and he began to learn that with John Eldredge.
Wednesday he skipped practice by his own choice. He didn't get around to completing his fifth English essay of the summer in time, and so he chose to stay home and work on it instead. On the one hand, I applaud his prioritization: academics, we have always said, come first, and he's chosen on a couple of occasions to miss some athletic endeavor in order to study. However, I don't think he realized that by missing the practice of the day before a game, he exposed himself to being benched for the game.
And so tonight, when the freshman Stallions hosted the Hawks, David was part of the dozens of boys patrolling the home sideline. When I realized he wasn't going to get in, my heart broke for him; on the other hand, valuable lessons are at risk of being learnt, about planning ahead, about doing what needs to be done, and about what kinds of levels of commitment it will take to be a student athlete for South County. Perhaps some will take root.
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